Groups and Single Decorations for Gallantry C.B. (Military) London Gazette 15 November 1898: ‘In recognition of services in Egypt and the Sudan, including Battles of Atbara and Khartoum.’


Ottoman Order of the Medjidie, Third Class London Gazette 17 January 1890: ‘In recognition of their services in the actions at Toski and Gemaizah whilst actually and entirely employed beyond Her Majesty’s Dominions with the Egyptian Army.’


David Francis Lewis was born on 21 October 1855 in Buttington, Mongomeryshire, the eldest son of the Reverend D. Phillips Lewis, rector of Llandrinio. He was educated at Oswestry School from where he was gazetted sub-lieutenant unattached dated 11 February 1875 and proceeded to the Royal Military College, Sandhurst the same year. In January 1876 he joined the 2nd Battalion, 3rd Foot, ‘The Buffs’, and in 1877 was promoted to a lieutenantcy (ante-dated to 11 February 1875). He served as district adjutant in Natal from April to November 1878 and during the Zulu War with The Buffs, firstly in the action at Inyezane, and then at the investment of Eshowe where, on 11 March 1879, he suffered a bullet wound to the head while out on a working party. He was Mentioned in Colonel C.K. Pearson’s Despatches (London Gazette 16 May 1879).


Remaining with the second battalion, he was musketry instructor from 1880 until 1883, promoted Captain 1884 and appointed aide- de-camp to Sir George Bowen, Governor of Hong Kong, 1884-85. In the following year he joined the Egyptian Army seeing much active service including: Second in command of the Frontier Force, he served during Operations on the Frontier and East Sudan as Commanding Officer of the 9th Sudanese Battalion; in the action at Gemaizah, 1888, during the Mahdist War (Ottoman Order of the Medjidie Third class). In 1891 he transferred to the Cheshire Regiment, still attached to the Egyptian Army, was promoted Major in the British Army, and in 1896 he was advanced Brevet Lieutenant-Colonel.


During the reconquest of the Sudan, ‘Lewis Bey’ commanded the 1st Brigade in the Dongola campaign 1896, (Mentioned in Despatches London Gazette 3 November 1896) and 3rd Brigade in 1898, including the Battles of the Atbara and Omdurman: for his services he was awarded the C.B., and was twice Mentioned in Despatches (London Gazettes 24 May 1898 and 30 September 1898). At the end of 1898 he was engaged in various operations on the Blue Nile including commanding an infantry brigade at the Battle of Roseires where, in overall command, he inflicted a decisive defeat on Ahmed Fedil’s Army in the Cataract south of Roseires.


A Good Dusting by Henry Keown-Boyd takes up the story: ‘The Welshman’s force was small and stricken with malaria but it consisted of experienced 10th Soudanese under Lieutenant-Colonel Nason of the Cameronians, a small detachment of the 9th Soudanese under Captain Sir Henry Hill of the Royal Irish Fusiliers, two Maxims handled by Royal Marine sergeants and several hundred Friendlies under a former Mahdist, Sheikh Bakr Mustafa. On Christmas afternoon, Sheikh Bakr, patrolling the west bank, reported that Ahmed had attempted to cross the Blue Nile but had been forced back. Lewis, who marched down the east bank that same afternoon from Roseires, found the Mahdist position the following morning at a point where the river divides into two fast-flowing streams around a large sandy island. Most of Ahmed’s force was on this island but the wily emir himself had, contrary to Bakr’s earlier report, reached the west bank with a group of riflemen, leaving Saadallah in command on the island. Sergeants Lambert and Trowbridge immediately opened up with their Maxims but the enemy were well protected from long-range fire by sandhills and it soon became apparent to Lewis that they could only be dislodged by an infantry attack.


With difficulty the 10th and Friendlies crossed the deep, fast torrent onto the island and with typically fearless Soudanese elan under a blizzard of fire drove the defenders from their positions into the river on the west side of the island where many, including Saadallah, were drowned. But Soudanese casualties too had been heavy in the fierce fighting around the sandhills and the 10th lost twenty-five men killed, one missing, presumably drowned, and 122 officers and men (including major C. Fergusson, D.S.O. Grenadier Guards) wounded, nearly four times the battalion’s casualties at the Battle of the Atbara. The friendlies also lost a number of men killed and wounded. The two Marine sergeants who, aided by their escort of 9th Soudanese under Yuzbashi (Capt) Mohamed Abu Shaila, had managed to manhandle their machine-guns onto the island in support of the infantry and to engage Ahmed Fadel’s riflemen on the west bank, were among those decorated, both receiving the D.C.M. Ahmed Fadel, well placed for flight, escaped to join Khalifa in Kordofan with a diminishing band of followers. In addition to Lewis’s estimate of 500 Mahdist dead, about 1700 had been captured.’


Lewis was advanced Lieutenant-Colonel on 18 January 1899 and his detailed report of the Roseires engagement was included in Kitchener’s Despatch of 8 February 1899 (London Gazette 5 May 1899). He saw also took part in the Nile Expedition later in 1899 and in the operations which resulted in the final defeat of the Khalifa, the action at Um Dibaykarat (Gedid), organising a flying column and commanding an infantry brigade, he was Mentioned in Despatches a sixth time (London Gazette 30 January 1900), receiving a glowing tribute from Colonel Sir Reginald Wingate, Commanding Troops on the White Nile, for his services in this his final action: ‘To Brevet Colonel Lewis, commanding the Infantry Brigade, my most cordial thanks are due. The previous good services of this gallant officer are well known. On him devolved the arduous duty of rapidly concentrating the flying column at Fachi Shoya, prior to my arrival. Throughout the recent operations he has given fresh proof of his capacity for command, and to his energy and great practical knowledge of the handling of troops I attribute, in a large measure, the success which has been achieved.’


After his return to England, on 14 March 1900 Lewis received the appointment of aide-de-camp to Queen Victoria and subsequently to King Edward VII.


Seeking new adventures, Colonel Lewis was next engaged as a war correspondent for The Times newspaper, reporting from Morocco with the French Army in 1907 and with the Spanish Forces around Melilla in 1909. After the outbreak of the Great War, he raised the 16th Battalion, Royal Warwickshire Regiment in October 1914 and was County Commandant of the Warwickshire Volunteer Corps. He also served on the county magisterial bench for Warwickshire. He died at his residence, Hungerdown, near Chippenham on 2 February 1927.


Sold with a photographic image of the recipient and copied research.


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